Over the past few months, I’ve realized that I had been taking way too much for granted.

I thought that by now, I would have been driving into the senior lot every day, or at the very least have the option to if I had a car. I thought I would be able to see my friends after a long summer, make a lot of inside jokes, and have the most fun I’ve ever had. I thought that I would have the freedom to do what I want and go where I want to go (without my parents driving me there).
COVID-19 had other plans. Given the current direction the country and state is going in terms of cases and deaths, we will all end up losing a full school year of in-person experiences. That means no yelling our heads off at football games, no more talking over each other in class while the teacher waits for us to finish, and given the current setup, much less opportunity to make life-long friends.
But life must go on. College applications are right around the corner. That one class has an essay due tomorrow and no one has started it. There are a million other things hanging over everyone’s heads. We all have something, and it’s not going away just because we’re practically locked in our houses.
That being said, this virus can only stop you from having fun if you let it. There many resources we can use to get around not actually being there in person. We’re already using Zoom for 6 hours a day, why not another hour with all your friends for a party? Put up a projector screen and watch a movie from separate cars. These are just some of the ideas that my friends have come up with. Make it work. We are in this together.